Science and Magic
by WrenAlexandra
Summary: After disobeying her father to help a friend, Sydney Sage gets sent to a boarding school far from home. Her father believes Sydney will be set straight at the Academy, but threats, distractions and forbidden romance lurk both outside, and within, the school grounds. As it turns out, St. Vladimir's Academy is no place for you if you're looking to stay out of trouble. All-Moroi


Chapter 1: Change

**As you may know from the summary, we'll be joining Sydney Sage as she begins her senior year at St. Vladimir's! All characters you may recognize are moroi and ages have been changed so they're all in their senior year. **

**Disclaimer: Anything you recognize is, unfortunately, not mine. All characters and world belong to Richelle Mead.**

I was sitting in Headmistress Kirova's office staring out the window at the breathtaking view of the mountains. St. Vladimir's was located in Montana, nestled away between mountains, and surrounded by a dense forest. The view reminded me of how homesick I was, and how much I'd rather be with my family back in Utah. Had my father not shipped me off I would be there now, with my mother and sisters. Had I not been so desperate for his approval I'd probably be there with them sitting around the dinner table, but my father had asked me to attend school here and I consented without complaint. Oh, how I really wished I hadn't.

"Ms. Sage," came a shrill voice behind me.

I tuned at the sound and answered respectfully. "Yes, ma'am?"

"Your registration is in order!" The secretaries round face brightened. "Welcome to St. Vladimir's, Ms. Sage!" She was very excited and led me away, giving me a quick tour of the grounds on the way to my dorm. She led to the upper-classmen girls dorms, at the west end of the campus. There was a similar looking building nearby that I assumed was the boy's dorms.

The woman left me in my dorm room to get settled in. My roommate hadn't arrived yet and the room was bare and orderly. The dorm was small, with two sets of identical beds, desks and dressers against two of the walls. I began to unpack my things. I hadn't brought much with me; I'd had to pack up my things in a rush. I unpacked my prim blouses and cardigans, along with a few pairs of jeans, khakis and pencil skirts. I set my empty bag at the foot of my bed, satisfied that everything had a proper place. Suddenly, I heard a soft knock on the door.

The person knocking didn't wait for an answer. Instead she walked right in with a nervous smile on her face. She was quite pretty. She was tall and pale like most moroi with jade green eyes and wild curly brown hair.

I introduced myself right away. "Hello, I'm Sydney Sage."

She still seemed nervous. "Hi, I'm Jillian Mastrano, but please just call me Jill." She spoke quickly, as though rushing to say everything in one breath. "It's nice to meet you. I guess we're roommates, huh? Where you from?" I could've swore she had to gasp for air at the end.

I smiled. "Utah"

"Oh, that's not too far. I'm from Michigan. I just transferred to the academy this year. I miss home."

"Me too." Jill seemed just as unsure as I was. It was reassuring to know I wasn't the only one. "Once you're done unpacking why don't we go explore the campus a bit."

Jill's face lit up. "Sure, I'll be quick!" I winced as she dumped the contents of her suitcase on her bed and quickly tossed garments into her dresser.

Once Jill had finished emptying the rest of her things on the floor of our dorm, we headed to the main building for dinner. The grand hall was full of people by the time we'd arrived and the both the lines for the cafeteria and the feeders were long. As we were making our way through the crowds I heard my name being called. To my surprise, I turned to find a familiar face.

"Hello Rose." The girl who stood before me was beautiful. She was tanner and curvier than most moroi with dark eyes, dark brown hair and a confident smile. She gave me a quick hug. I was surprised at her reaction, but I returned the hug awkwardly.

"It's been a long time, Syd." She pulled back. "Everything okay?"

I glanced over at Jill quickly. "Oh, yes. Nothing I couldn't handle." Not entirely true, but I didn't want to bring anything up in front of Jill.

Rose seemed to understand. "We'll talk later, I'll come by your room after dinner."

I simply nodded, and let Rose lead Jill and I to her table. She introduced us to her friends. There was a girl with fair blonde hair and jade green eyes and a boy with red hair and blue eyes. I found it funny, how my father had sent me to the academy to keep me out of trouble. As I sat with Rose, Jill, Lissa and Mason I realized he hadn't succeeded with that one. It should've worried me that I'd found more trouble. My dad would've wanted me to get up and avoid this rebellious girl and her friends. I stayed right where I was, and I was happier than I had been in days.

**So I'm still setting stuff up but I promise things will pick up soon! I've almost finished the second chapter so hopefully I can get the chapter up in a couple of days! This is my first fanfic ever, so let me know what you think of the story so far and who you're looking forward to meeting in the next chapters! ;) **


End file.
